Note: Another gift for you guys since I have been on this planet for 24 years now. Hopefully, more years to come! 

Word count: 2424 (It had been difficult to have that exact number of words. Edit here and there.)

Enjoy! Happy January 4th to everyone!

The owner showed her the flat she just rented and reminded her that it was also being rented by another person. Basing on the smell that lingered the common areas, she would be sharing a flat with a guy. It did not bothered her the least upon knowing such information as long as the rent is cheap and she has a roof above her head. It was fine for her. And flat was spacious enough for the two of them anyways. 

The owner, Eric, decided to live at his girlfriend’s place so he decided to rent out his old place to friends. He bought the place years before meeting Ailee. 

Eric gave her a quick tour to where her room was and the other unused bathroom was. He wished her a pleasant stay on his flat even the flat was not that tidy as he expected it to be and left her be. 

//

She found a sink full of plates and dirty pans -- a week’s worth of dirty dishes. At least she knew her faceless roommate somehow knows how to cook, yet did not want to wash dishes. She also found out he likes eggs given there are a lot of it in the refrigerator. And his leftover containers are full of different egg dishes. The other ingredients he has inside are a bit pricey. She had checked the price tags on them. “Wowza! Is this guy made of money?” 

“So he can cook, likes eggs among other things, does not wash the dishes, and rich.” She nodded as she listed down what she knew so far. 

“And apparently leave his clothes all over the place.” She did not even want to know if they were clean. She gathered the clothes in a pile above the coach. 

She ended up tidying the place up before unpacking her suitcases in her room. 

//

Upon entering, he went straight to his room. There was a feeling of panic when he stood in full alert by his room’s door frame. He looked around and finally noticed his other shoes were neatly organized upon the door upon going back to the front door, and the dishes were clean and placed inside the kitchen cabinets as he opened them, when it hit him that someone other than him was here. He tried to recall if he got any message from Eric earlier that week as he gathered his baseball bat in his room. “And besides, why would Eric even clean the house? He does not even live here anymore.”

She stood up as fast as she could when he heard a noise outside her room. She recalled where the common areas were located. Was it coming from kitchen? Living room? She knitted her eyebrows, thinking. 

He held the bat as he slowly walked through the apartment cautiously. 

She saw a man holding a wooden object. She kicked him by the back of his calf causing him to fall along with his bat. She then kneed him by the crotch, and brought her forearm to his neck, not letting him move, ready to punch when he would decide to make a mistake of hurting her. 

He winched in pain upon the contact of a knee on his crotch. 

He cursed as Amber realized who this person underneath her might be. “Get o--ff of-- me! Who-- the --are you?” He tried to speak even if he had someone’s forearm choking him. 

She immediately retracted her knee and stood up, though still on high alert. 

“Oh !” She nervously looked at the man, slightly embarrassed. “Are you Harry, my other roommate?”

“It’s Henry by the way. Woo! You got one hell of a knee.” He bent over, hands on his knees, keeping his breathing steady. 

“You were holding a bat. You looked like an intruder.” On her defense. She crossed her arms over her chest since she was ready to go to bed when she saw him.

“It seemed someone had been inside my apartment.” He pointed out how tidy the place was. “And I did not remember hiring anyone to clean my apartment.” 

“You have a lot of dirty dishes that could attract pests so..” 

“Thanks for doing that. And my clothes, sorry about that.” He slightly chuckled, easing up the tense situation that just happened minutes ago. “And you are?” 

“Amber” She replied with a smile. 

“Welcome home then! This is definitely the most painful way on meeting a girl.”

“Let me grab an ice pack for that.” 

“That would be a great idea” He winced as he walked towards the living room. “It is definitely a wrong a decision to wear skinny jeans. I feel like my crotch is on fire.” He adjusted his jeans before sitting down. “ it!” He ped and ed his jeans. 

“Here you go--” She stopped on her tracks, and averting her eyes. “Oh God!” 

“Oh! Sorry!” He covered himself, now in his boxers, with a throw pillow. 

“No. It’s okay. You must be in pain.” She handed over some frozen packed vegetables she found inside the freezer. “This is the best thing I could find.” Still averting her eyes. 

“This could do.” He took a deep breath (a moan?) when he felt the cold. 

A blush crept up to her face when she heard the sound he just made. “Think about something else, Amber. Did he just ing moan right in front of me?”

“Well, that sounded a bit...weird.” He settled on that word. He was suddenly out of breath again, slightly embarrassed. He was still in pain and finally the cold pack of peas was alleviating the pain. “You can go back to your room. Rest. It is already late. I can manage.” 

“Just call me if you need my help.” Amber was already walking to her room. “Goodnight. And nice meeting you, Henry.” 

“It was really nice meeting you, Amber.” 

//

Amber was the first one to woke up. She checked up on Henry, who was still on the couch, sleeping, and a blanket above him.

She saw his clothes thrown haphazardly around the area. She picked them up and neatly folded them for him. It was the least she could do, right? She figured. And another mental note to add to her list she had on her now not faceless roommate, that he sleeps half ? ? She was not sure. “But there is a possibility, given the clothes I just folded. Remember never to run into him in this state.”

She then looked at her sleeping roommate. She realized she had been staring. “Hmm. Weird.” She shook her head. And mentally cursed as she was already late for work and her excuse of staring at her possibly roommate was not definitely a valid excuse. 

Before leaving, she left a piece of paper underneath the unusual centerpiece on top of the coffee table. She wrote her number on it with her initials - “If you need anything, call or text me.. 08254796371 -ajol”

//

A series of buzzes woke him up. It was already late in the afternoon. He wobbly stood up and walked towards the intercom. “Yes?” 

“Thank God! You’re still home. It thought you won’t be there at this time.” 

“Amber?” He guessed. He still could not understand the whole situation. 

“Yeah. I forgot my keys. I was running late earlier.” 

“Oh. I will buzz you in. And will leave the door unlocked for you.” Amber heard their room’s door unlocking over the intercom.

“Thanks!” The sound of paper bags being adjusted in her arm were heard on Amber’s end of the line. 

He stretched up a bit. He scratched his cheek absentmindedly as he picked up his blanket that was covering him. The blanket was so soft that he wanted to go back to sleep again. Wide-eyed, dropping the blanket again, “! ! !” Amber would be here soon and he was , (and he smelled his armpits, and made a face), and badly needed a shower. 

He rushed towards the bathroom and waited there until he heard the door open. Running the water would not let him hear the door being opened so he decided to wait until she arrives at the apartment. 

Amber heard running water and Henry singing in the nearest bathroom as she placed her groceries at the kitchen counter. 

She was already chopping when he called her. “Yes?” 

“Uhm..” He shyly smiled at her. His head was popped out by the bathroom door. “I forgot to bring a towel. Could you…?” 

“Sure. Where can I get yours?” 

“You can get a new one. Before when I was living alone, I do not have one. I just go straight to my room after..” He trailed off, as it was getting uncomfortable again.  He was sharing too much information. “Nearest white cabinet, topmost.” He pointed at its location. 

“Here.” Upon getting a towel for him to use. 

He was waiting by the door. “You are life saver.” He winked and closed the door. She stood frozen on the spot. “What the hell just happened?” She could not stop the tint of red that found its place on her cheeks. Thank goodness Henry already closed the door.

“Oh ! The boiling water!” She brought back to her senses and went towards the kitchen.

//

“Thanks again for the towel.” He went out of the bathroom. Towel wrapped around his waist.

suddenly went dry. She (at least) managed to reply a “No..problem.” 

She definitely liking living with a male roommate so far. 

//

“What are you making?” Now, a fully-clothed Henry walked towards her. 

“Hopefully it taste as good as it looks.” She then added some seasoning.

“Let me guess. Seaweed soup.” He covered the casserole pan. 

“I make a decent seaweed soup. One of the few foods I can confidently make. I usually buy take out.” She started cleaning up as they waited. 

“And the others?” 

“I was a server and a part-time sous chef at mexican restaurant a year and half ago. Nachos and tacos, mostly, and this big chocolate chip cookie.” She grabbed a plate to show him the size. 

“Ah. Really? Can’t wait for you to make those some other time.” 

“Sure. Why not.” She started getting the plates from the cabinets.

“Please let me. You are already preparing the food.” 

//

“What are you doing?” 

“Washing the dishes? Because you hate doing that.” She teased.

“From now on, we shall set some house rules. And one of them is if anyone of us will be in charge of the food - buying and/or preparing them - the other one will be the one washing the dishes. In this case, I shall be the one doing that.” He bumped his hips towards Amber’s. “Move away from the faucet, Missy.” 

“Fine.” She splattered some water towards him. “Let me think of the other rules.” 

“A rule for a rule.” 

“Okay. Any property on the floor at the common areas no longer than 24 hours will be thrown away and/or given to charity. For example, that pair of socks.” She pointed at them that were behind the sofa. “If that was there 24 hours ago, I will throw them away even if it is your favorite socks. Even if it has sentimental value to you.” 

“As if I am the only one that will be leaving things on the floor.” 

“Like 99.9% of the time.” 

“Fine. My turn.” Closing the faucet. “We should allot a day, any day of the week, to hang out.” 

“Hang out?”

“Like what we are doing now.” 

“Like making dinner for the both of us but in a weekly basis?” 

“And some other stuff” 

“Ex--Excuse me? What other stuff?”

“Wait. Oh, sorry. I mean like we could watch a movie. Go biking. Do you bike around the city? Do you want to bike with me?”

“Oh. That other stuff. I would like to, Henry.” 

He smirked. “What kind of other stuff did you thought of?” 

“You are the one who brought ‘the other stuff’ up. Not me.” She threw a dish cloth at him. 

“Sure, Amber, sure. That is what you thought of.”

“Whatever, Henry.” She was mentally screaming at this point of the conversation. “Can he stop being stupid (and cute and hot) just this once?” 

//

She almost choked on her milk and cereal when she saw Henry with his new haircut. “What the hell is that?” 

“What? Is there something on my face?” 

“That!” She pointed at his head.

“Does it look bad?”

“Is the hairdresser or barber mad at you? Did you break her heart or something? Or steal his girlfriend?” 

“It is not that bad.” He tried to fix his hair.

“It hurts my eyes just by looking at it.” She went towards her room. 

“Hey! Did my hairstyle offended you that much? You are exaggerating.”

“Put this on” She threw a bonnet at his face. 

Upon catching it, “It will grow longer anyways,” refusing to put it on. 

“Put the goddamn bonnet on or I will do it myself.” She started approaching him.

“No.  Never in a million years.” 

“Do us all a favor, Henry.” 

“Us?”

“Everyone else in the planet. Everyone else in the universe for that matter. Aliens are also offended. That is how ugly whatever monstrosity is on your head.” She then noticed Henry was really offended. “Or...at least let me style it differently.” She said it calmly. She gently dragged him by the mirror inside her bathroom. “Close your eyes.” 

“O..kay.” He smiled, forgiving her on her comments earlier, rolling his eyes. He then followed what he was told.

“Now you follow.” She was now the one rolling her eyes. He just laughed. 

“Amber, if you just want to hold my hand, you can just say so.” 

Upon reaching the bathroom, “You have candles in here. Neat!” He sniffed how good the area smelled. “Are those aromatic candles?” He opened his eyes to see, “And are those potpourri? Your bathroom is wayyyy cleaner than mine.” 

“What did I tell you?” 

“Okay, Boss.” He closed his eyes again. “This better look good, Amber.” 

He heard a lid being opened, and some squirting sound and rubbing of hands. 

She styled his hair up and got rid of his bangs. “You’re welcome.” She did him, the world, and the aliens a favor.

He opened his eyes. “It does looks a bit better.” 

“Just a bit?”

“This much” His index finger and thumb was just one millimeter away from each other. 

//